Obama Calls for Israeli-Palestinian Talks 'With Sustained Focus and Determination'

President Obama has released a statement calling for Israeli-Palestinians “talks in good faith and with sustained focus and determination.”

“I am pleased that Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas have accepted Secretary Kerry’s invitation to formally resume direct final status negotiations and have sent senior negotiating teams to Washington for the first round of meetings. This is a promising step forward, though hard work and hard choices remain ahead,” Obama’s statement reads.